Released August 13, 2025 | GALWAY, IRELAND
en
Written by Martin Lynch, European News Editor for Industrial Info (Galway, Ireland)--U.K. engineering firm Rolls-Royce (London, England) has advanced plans for the rollout of its small modular reactor (SMR) technology in the Czech Republic with the signing of separate agreements with state-owned power company CEZ Group (Prague) and nuclear engineering and manufacturing company SKODA JS (Pilsen, Czech Republic).
CEZ and Rolls-Royce, which have agreed to work on building the first SMR near the Temelin nuclear power plant in the mid 2030s, have signed an Early Works Agreement, enabling both parties to launch site-specific work at the Temelín site. The early works will include regulatory approvals and licensing, environmental assessments, and preparatory site work at Temelín. The partners want to deploy Rolls-Royce's proposed 470-megawatt (MW) SMR, based on a small pressurized water reactor (PWR), which will be capable of powering 450,000 homes for 60 years. Each plant will take up 10% of the footprint of a conventional nuclear power plant. CEZ took a 20% stake in the Rolls-Royce SMR company in late 2024 and the Czech government wants Rolls-Royce to spearhead its plan to roll out up to 3 gigawatts (GW) of new nuclear power. Industrial Info is tracking 27 SMR projects in Europe - nine of them located in the Czech Republic - worth a potential US$39 billion in investment. Subscribers to Industrial Info's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) Project Database can click here for the reports.
Chris Cholerton, Rolls-Royce SMR chief executive officer, said: "This agreement is an important step forward in our partnership with ČEZ, demonstrating our shared ambition to move at pace to deliver reliable, clean nuclear power in the Czech Republic. We are proud to be working alongside CEZ to deliver a programme that will bring significant industrial and economic benefits to both our nations, while helping to meet critical energy security and decarbonisation goals."
Separately the company has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with nuclear engineering and components manufacturer SKODA JS to explore the production of key components for a global fleet of SMRs. SKODA JS, which is owned by CEZ, has operated in Europe for more than 60 years and has constructed and installed nuclear vessels for VVER and BWR reactors, developed and refurbished instrumentation and controls at a number of European nuclear plants and built a variety of vessels and components used in France's EPR nuclear technology. František Krček, chief executive officer of SKODA JS, said: "We are ready, and we have the significant support of our owner (CEZ) to invest further significant resources in the development of the SMR industry. We also want to involve our engineering capacities in this project in addition to our production capacities."
Earlier this summer, Industrial Info reported that Rolls-Royce was chosen by the U.K. government to build the country's first SMRs plants, following the first competition for small nuclear technology. After a two-year assessment process, Rolls-Royce beat competition from rivals Holtec International (Jupiter, Florida), GE-Hitachi Nuclear Energy International (Wilmington, North Carolina) and Westinghouse Electric Company (Cranberry Township, Pennsylvania). The government has announced £2.5 billion ($3.4 billion) for its SMR programme over the next four years. For additional information, see June 24, 2025, article--U.K. Picks Rolls-Royce for First Mini-Nuclear Plants.
Industrial Info Resources (IIR) is the leading provider of industrial market intelligence. Since 1983, IIR has provided comprehensive research, news and analysis on the industrial process, manufacturing and energy related industries. IIR's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) helps companies identify and pursue trends across multiple markets with access to real, qualified and validated plant and project opportunities. Across the world, IIR is tracking over 200,000 current and future projects worth $17.8 Trillion (USD).
CEZ and Rolls-Royce, which have agreed to work on building the first SMR near the Temelin nuclear power plant in the mid 2030s, have signed an Early Works Agreement, enabling both parties to launch site-specific work at the Temelín site. The early works will include regulatory approvals and licensing, environmental assessments, and preparatory site work at Temelín. The partners want to deploy Rolls-Royce's proposed 470-megawatt (MW) SMR, based on a small pressurized water reactor (PWR), which will be capable of powering 450,000 homes for 60 years. Each plant will take up 10% of the footprint of a conventional nuclear power plant. CEZ took a 20% stake in the Rolls-Royce SMR company in late 2024 and the Czech government wants Rolls-Royce to spearhead its plan to roll out up to 3 gigawatts (GW) of new nuclear power. Industrial Info is tracking 27 SMR projects in Europe - nine of them located in the Czech Republic - worth a potential US$39 billion in investment. Subscribers to Industrial Info's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) Project Database can click here for the reports.
Chris Cholerton, Rolls-Royce SMR chief executive officer, said: "This agreement is an important step forward in our partnership with ČEZ, demonstrating our shared ambition to move at pace to deliver reliable, clean nuclear power in the Czech Republic. We are proud to be working alongside CEZ to deliver a programme that will bring significant industrial and economic benefits to both our nations, while helping to meet critical energy security and decarbonisation goals."
Separately the company has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with nuclear engineering and components manufacturer SKODA JS to explore the production of key components for a global fleet of SMRs. SKODA JS, which is owned by CEZ, has operated in Europe for more than 60 years and has constructed and installed nuclear vessels for VVER and BWR reactors, developed and refurbished instrumentation and controls at a number of European nuclear plants and built a variety of vessels and components used in France's EPR nuclear technology. František Krček, chief executive officer of SKODA JS, said: "We are ready, and we have the significant support of our owner (CEZ) to invest further significant resources in the development of the SMR industry. We also want to involve our engineering capacities in this project in addition to our production capacities."
Earlier this summer, Industrial Info reported that Rolls-Royce was chosen by the U.K. government to build the country's first SMRs plants, following the first competition for small nuclear technology. After a two-year assessment process, Rolls-Royce beat competition from rivals Holtec International (Jupiter, Florida), GE-Hitachi Nuclear Energy International (Wilmington, North Carolina) and Westinghouse Electric Company (Cranberry Township, Pennsylvania). The government has announced £2.5 billion ($3.4 billion) for its SMR programme over the next four years. For additional information, see June 24, 2025, article--U.K. Picks Rolls-Royce for First Mini-Nuclear Plants.
Industrial Info Resources (IIR) is the leading provider of industrial market intelligence. Since 1983, IIR has provided comprehensive research, news and analysis on the industrial process, manufacturing and energy related industries. IIR's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) helps companies identify and pursue trends across multiple markets with access to real, qualified and validated plant and project opportunities. Across the world, IIR is tracking over 200,000 current and future projects worth $17.8 Trillion (USD).
